Britain sweltered on the warmest day of the year today as Andy Murray proved himself to be the hottest British tennis player of his generation by making history at Wimbledon.

The mercury reached 29C at Heathrow and Kew Gardens in the capital with much of the rest of the country also enjoying warm sunshine.

Thousands of spectators made the most of the hot weather to watch the men's singles final on giant outdoor screens set up at many locations across the country, while those who were lucky enough to be at Wimbledon donned hats and used umbrellas to shade themselves from the intense sun.

Beaches up and down the country were also packed, leading to more than 250 call outs to the coastguard.

Visitors to Victoria Park in east London were able to cool down in five-metre high water jets as a Guinness World Record was made for the largest ever residential water sprinkler.

Paul Mott, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said central and southern England all experienced hot weather, while temperatures were also high elsewhere.

Only north-west Scotland experienced cooler weather, but this is expected to change tomorrow as Scotland and Northern Ireland are due to be warmer than everywhere else.

"Scotland and Northern Ireland will have their hottest day of the year tomorrow," Mott said.

"In London and the rest of the country it will be a degree or two lower."

"Tuesday will see temperatures in the low to mid 20s, more warm, settled weather will continue into the weekend," he added.

Sunday's fine weather claimed its first life when a boy died while swimming in a disused quarry in Worcestershire.

The boy, who has not yet been named, failed to resurface after swimming in Gullet Quarry near Malvern with police warning against swimming in rivers, lakes and canals.

South Wales police and coastguards were searching for a 14-year-old girl on Sunday evening who was last seen "in difficulty" in the sea at Whitmore Bay, Barry Island.